BlackBerry BlackBerry Messenger is shutting down in MayEngadget - Mariella MoonThe enterprise-graded BBM is now available for individual use, though. BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) for consumers is shutting down for good on May 31st. When Indonesia-based media conglomerate Emtek took
Mark Zuckerberg FTC's Facebook investigation could focus on ZuckerbergEngadget - Mariella MoonRegulars might seek greater oversight of his leadership. Facebook's privacy troubles just keep on coming, one after another -- just recently, it revealed that Instagram stored millions of passwords in
BlackBerry BlackBerry's marginally upgraded, red-accented KEY2 is out todayEngadget - Saqib ShahAnd it costs $699. The BlackBerry KEY2 Red Edition lands in the US today with double the storage out of the box (128GB). More of a stop-gap than a sequel, the handset also packs Hub+ software improvements
Play buttonArtificial Intelligence Facebook AI turns real people into controllable game charactersEngadget - Steve DentCould this be the start of an FMV comeback? Facebook's AI Research team has created an AI called Vid2Play that can extract playable characters from videos of real people, creating a much higher-tech version
Netflix Netflix experiments with a random play buttonEngadget - Mat SmithIt's hidden inside a particular update of the Android app. Sometimes you just don't want to think. Who cares if it makes no narrative sense, let's just watch a random episode of your favorite show. For
Amazon Music The Morning After: The Weather Channel got hackedEngadget - Richard LawlerAnd the Mueller Report came out on CD-ROM. Hey, good morning! You look fabulous. Add The Weather Channel to the list of ransomware victims, and we have some news about the Google vs. Amazon tiff. Also,
Phishing Google will block embedded browser log-ins to fight phishingEngadget - Mariella MoonEmbedded browser log-ins are prone to man-in-the-middle attacks, after all. Embedded browsers within apps can be useful if you want to use an existing account from another service -- say, your Gmail log-in
Instagram Instagram test visualizes hiding 'Like' counts from viewersEngadget - Richard LawlerIt's not public yet, but that's how these things start. Everyone has their own opinion about what specifically is wrong with social media, but the currency of likes is a commonly-cited issue. The latest
Uber Uber's self-driving unit gets its own CEO and a $1 billion investmentEngadget - Richard LawlerToyota, Softbank and Denso teamed up on a deal that values Uber ATG at $7.25 billion. As Uber finally closes in on its IPO, its self-driving car unit is getting a big cash infusion and some independence.
Ransomware Ransomware interrupted a 'The Weather Channel' morning showEngadget - Mariella MoonA ransomware attack reportedly prevented the network from broadcasting live. On Thursday morning, from 6AM to 7:39AM, viewers weren't able to learn any useful weather information from The Weather Channel.
Play buttonBurnout Original 'Burnout Paradise' servers shut down August 1stEngadget - Richard LawlerThis won't affect the Remastered version that came out last year. All good things must come to an end, and that includes multiplayer support for the original Burnout Paradise. Emails sent to players and
Amazon Music Alexa owners can listen to Amazon Music for free -- with adsEngadget - AJ DellingerListeners will have access to top playlists and stations. Rumors started circulating last week that Amazon was exploring a free, ad-supported tier of its streaming music service. Turns out there was something
Play buttonMicrosoft Microsoft is making VR better for those with vision problemsEngadget - Amrita KhalidSeeingVR comes with a set of 14 tools to help those with low vision. Virtual reality can be a rush to the senses, but not if you have vision problems. Microsoft researchers are trying to solve that problem
Bixby Samsung updates Galaxy Buds with Bixby voice controlsEngadget - Christine FisherIt brings improved touch controls, too. Thanks to a recent firmware update, Samsung's Galaxy Buds now work with the company's Bixby voice assistant. In addition to having hands-free control of music and
Play buttonOverwatch League 'Overwatch' travels to Havana for its latest mapEngadget - Kris HoltEscort barrels of rum through Cuba's capital on the PC test server. Overwatch's Storm Rising brawl kicked off this week in a new locale: Havana. As with last year's edition of the Archives event, which
Netflix Netflix will invest up to $100 million in a NYC production hubEngadget - Jon FingasIt's going where the talent is. Netflix films many of its productions in New York City (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is just one example), so it only makes sense to have a large presence there, doesn't it?
Duffer Brothers ‘Stranger Things’ plagiarism lawsuit heads to trialEngadget - Amrita KhalidA filmmaker says the Netflix show’s creators stole his idea. A lawsuit that accuses Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer of stealing the idea for the hit Netflix show is headed for a jury trial.
Apple Wirecutter's best deals: Save $150 on an 11-inch Apple iPad ProEngadget - WirecutterOther picks include the Fluance RT81 turntable and Microsoft Xbox Wireless Controller. This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial
Facebook Facebook stored millions of Instagram passwords in plain textEngadget - Christine FisherJust like the 600 million Facebook passwords the company mentioned last month. Last month, news broke that Facebook employees had access to up to 600 million user passwords, which had been stored in plain
Fitbit Fitbit Versa Lite review: The basics aren't enoughEngadget - Cherlynn LowThe bare-bones smartwatch needs to be about $60 cheaper. I wasn't sure what to expect when Fitbit announced the Versa Lite smartwatch. It's supposed to be a pared-back iteration of last year's Versa, itself
Netflix Netflix is turning Broadway's 'Boys in the Band' into a filmEngadget - Kris HoltJim Parsons, Zachary Quinto and Matt Bomer will reprise their roles. Netflix doesn't have much in the way of theater productions on its streaming platform, with Bruce Springsteen's one-man Broadway show
Eric Trump Russia worked hard to recruit social media users to campaign for TrumpEngadget - Edgar AlvarezThe IRA got someone to dress up as Santa with a mask of the president's face. We already knew that the Internet Research Agency (IRA), which is essentially a farm of bots and trolls, exposed 126 million
HBO HBO isn't happy about Trump's Game of Thrones-inspired tweetsEngadget - Kris Holt'We still prefer our IP not be used for political purposes,' the network said. With the Mueller report finally making its way into the hands of the public, President Donald Trump was quick to claim victory
Uber Uber adds new safety alerts following the death of a college studentEngadget - AJ DellingerThe company will also start setting up safe pickup areas on college campuses. Following the murder of a college student who mistakenly entered a vehicle she believed to be an Uber, the ridesharing company
Recruitment Puma is recruiting beta testers for its self-lacing sneakersEngadget - Richard LaiThe Puma Fi beta program is taking applications until April 28th in select countries. When Engadget took an exclusive look at the Puma Fi self-lacing shoes earlier this year, the company teased an upcoming
Halo The 'Halo' TV series has found its Master ChiefEngadget - Jon FingasPablo Schrieber from 'American Gods' will play the super soldier. The years-in-the-making Halo TV series finally appears to be taking shape. Showtime has chosen American Gods' Pablo Schrieber to play series'
Google Home YouTube Music is free on Google Home, if you don't mind adsEngadget - Rachel EnglandHey Google, play 'Rewind.' Starting today, YouTube Music is offering a free, ad-supported experience on Google Home speakers and other Google Assistant-powered speakers. Just navigate to account settings,
Chocolate Brownie Soylent launches 100-calorie 'mini-meal' barEngadget - Amrita KhalidSilicon Valley’s meal replacement drink adds more variety. Soylent, the drink of choice for Silicon Valley bros with no time to eat, is launching a new line of snack bars. Known as Soylent Squared, the
Apple Store Apple is making it easier to recycle iPhones in the USEngadget - Christine FisherIt's quadrupling the number of drop-off recycling locations. With Earth Day just around the corner, Apple announced it's quadrupling the number of locations US customers can send their iPhones for recycling.
Russia The Mueller report is out: Read it hereEngadget - Cherlynn LowIt has details on the Russian interference with the 2016 presidential election. The long-awaited Mueller report is finally out, and you can download it for your lunchtime reading if you have a ton of to
